Salad of Spiced Lamb, Rice Vermicelli and Holy Basil

Name: Salad of Spiced Lamb, Rice Vermicelli and Holy Basil
Yield: Serves 8
Ingredients: 4 cm (1½ in) piece fresh galangal; 4 lamb loins (loin roast), approximately 155 g (5 oz) per person; 30 red shallots or 4 red onions; 1 large fresh green (or Anaheim) chilli pepper; 6 large garlic cloves; 155 g (5 oz) palm sugar; 45 g (1½ oz) palm sugar; 1½ tablespoons fish sauce; ⅓ cup (90 mL/3 fl oz) peanut (groundnut) oil; 1½ tablespoons peanut oil; 2 fresh birdseye (or serrano) chilli peppers; 10 garlic cloves; 405 mL (13 fl oz) peanut oil; 2 cups fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves; ⅓ cup (90 mL/3 fl oz) fish sauce; 2 tablespoons spice paste (above); 250 g (8 oz) rice vermicelli; 2 cups (500 mL/16 fl oz) lime juice; 15 red shallots or 2 red onions; 10 fresh lime leaves; 4 cm (1½ in) piece fresh ginger; 1 tablespoon vegetable oil; 3 large fresh red chilli peppers; 2 cups fresh holy basil leaves

Preparation info

Serves
8

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

A Taste of Australia

By Victoria Alexander and Genevieve Harris

Published 1995

About

Holy basil, sometimes known as Thai or hot basil, has a distinctive licorice flavour and small, purplish leaves. If it is unavailable, substitute green basil but use half the specified amount.

Ingredients

Spice Paste

30 red shallots or 4 red onions
10 garlic cloves

Main course
Gluten-free

Method

TO MAKE SPICE PASTE, peel and roughly chop the shallots or onions, garlic, ginger and galangal. Chop the chilli peppers. Place all of these in a blender and add the palm sugar, peanut oil and fish sauce. Blend until you have a fine paste. Put aside 2 tablespoons of the paste for the dressing.

TO MARINATE LAMB, rub the remainder of the spice paste over the lamb loins. Set t